Carnival: Seduction in Masks

An exhibition of photographs by Martin Edwards. Carnivals form part of popular culture across the world, from the Nottingham Carnival of London, to carnivals in Brazil, Venice and China.

They have featured in many films and literary works, and create powerful images of seduction, eroticism and mystery.The exhibition ”Carnival” explores the theme of carnival through works by photographer Martin Edwards. Photographs from ”Carnival” were premiered in New York in December 2009 and follow two solo exhibitions held by Martin Edwards in London, also at the Red Gate Gallery, in 2009. Martin has worked with dancers and period carnival costumes to create evocative and original photographic works that explore the concept of carnival in detail. The photographs focus on a story of seduction and flirtation between three dancers, dressed in costume for a carnival in 18th-century Venice.

Martin’s work pushes traditional still photography to its limits, in a rapidly changing world where multimedia and video are profoundly changing the world of lens-based arts. He explores form, colour and scale within his photographs, working with long exposures that create fluid, haunting representations of movement. ”A man and a woman dancing in a carnival mask is an ambiguous and haunting image. Their faces are hidden but their disguises offer glimpses of seduction and eroticism at play. I have tried to capture their mystery and excitement in the project,”says photographer Martin Edwards.